BLADE RUNNERS v DREAM BREAKERS – Cricket World Cup’s ones to watch

The ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 opens on September 30th in India and Sri Lanka. Meenakshi Rao talks us through the players to watch.

The tournament, which has gained shine and spine over the years, is a stellar summit where the best players will gather to fight for the most coveted prize in women’s cricket. It’s about constructing legacies, renewing rivalries, and a galaxy of old and new stars orchestrating scintillating action on the grandest stage, for the grandest prize.

All eight teams (India, Australia, England, New Zealand, South Africa, Bangladesh, and Pakistan) come into the arena with their distinct brands of performers — rockstars, troubleshooters, magic spinners, speed divas, and players who have scripted impossible wins to make folklore. From record-breaking batters to fearsome bowlers to dynamic all-rounders, here is a rundown on the finest armoury, assembled for this big-ticket event.

Batters: The blade runners

A team is often remembered for its run machines – their cuts, drives, and aerial audacities that pump adrenaline into the game. Here are some game changers to look out for in this World Cup.

Smriti Mandhana (India, ICC Rank No. 1)

Team India’s vice-captain Smriti Mandhana is a heady mixture of elegance and aggression at the top of the order. Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur’s most trusted shoulder and tactical brain, the Mumbai girl has accumulated 559 World Cup runs in 16 matches. Against no lesser team than Australia, she smashed the second-fastest women’s ODI hundred in 50 balls, setting aside Virat Kohli’s record in the Indian statistical room. On home soil, with a Player of the Series in her pocket against the Aussies, that’s a weapon hard to counter. Look out for her cover drives, they’ll be quite a statement for the bowlers she so effortlessly dominates.

Phoebe Litchfield (Australia, Rank No. 19)

The youngest jewel in Australia’s batting crown, Phoebe Litchfield, has been lucrative in India, amassing meaningful scores in the 2023 series. Noticed as a 16-year-old sensation at nets back home, she has several livewire performances to showcase, both in the field and at the crease. A youthful entry into the Aussie squad, who debuted against India in the 2022 T20 series, she has the praise of Meg Lanning as “the player who does things with the bat as no one else does”. The numbers back this up. In 29 ODIs, she has amassed 983 runs at an average of 39.32, including two centuries and seven fifties. 

Her breakthrough year came in 2023, when she piled up 485 runs with the highest of 106 not out. Proud owner of the ICC Emerging Cricketer of the Year, the bowlers will be strategising on the “Phoebe damage control mission” against this southpaw, with the rare gift of timing and fearlessness in the batting department. She represents youth, ambition, and match moulding in a team overflowing with legends.

Beth Mooney (Australia, Rank No. 3)

The fiery southpaw has usurped even the legendary Ellyse Perry at the top of Australia’s batting charts, thanks to her blistering form just before the World Cup. On September 20, at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi, Mooney turbo-charged the innings with a 75-ball 138, her fastest ton. She scored 106 from 72 balls with Perry, and then 82 off 46 with Ashleigh Gardner, to post the highest ever team total in women’s ODIs against India.

Coming into the World Cup with such fire and spirit, this wicket-keeping middle-order batswoman will certainly turn heads and look to sip from the cup of success. With no less than 85 ODI caps and the ability to steady as well as accelerate scores, the Mooney steel will be central to Australia’s quest for yet another crown.

Nigar Sultana Joty (Bangladesh, Rank No. 25)

Looking for a rock? Meet Nigar, Bangladesh’s biggest and most special one. With 1317 ODI runs in her bag, this Bengal tigress is captain, anchor, and inspiration for a team rapidly working to star among the great. Nigar Sultana Joty will be leading her second World Cup, and she will look to celebrate her 10 years in the game by making some waves and inspiring the rest of her team. She thrives on responsibility, and her composure in pressure situations has often been Bangladesh’s only lifeline.

Nat Sciver-Brunt (England, ICC Rank No. 2)

A comprehensive batter on top of her game, Sciver-Brunt is quite an English heartbeat. Just to describe her in numbers: 4092 runs in 121 ODIs, a blistering 148 not out in the 2022 World Cup Final, 79 wickets with a glowing 4/59; 833 runs from 16 innings in 2022, with 11 wickets. At 33, and as skipper, she is England’s most bankable match-winner at the top. The cherry on the cake? Her fiery 122 against India in the warm-up game leading to the World Cup.

Sophie Devine (New Zealand, Rank No. 15)

The Kiwi skipper is on the brink of 4000 ODI runs, needing just 10 more. Her eight centuries speak of her consistency, while her World Cup tally of 669 runs across four editions reflects her longevity. Her ton against South Africa in 2013 remains iconic, and in 2025, she will once again lead from the front as the talisman of New Zealand’s batting line-up.

Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa, ICC Batter Rank No. 4)

South Africa reached the World Cup semi-finals in the last two editions and ended up as runners-up in consecutive T20 World Cups. Much of this great run can be attributed to the elegant Wolvaardt, who has a mountain of 4519 runs in just 107 ODIs, touching a 50 average. Her 433-run haul in the 2022 World Cup made her South Africa’s leading scorer and, across tournaments, she has 757 runs in 15 games. With a skipper’s armband and her delectable cover drives, she stands as South Africa’s brightest beacon.

Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka, Rank No. 10)

Sri Lanka has been on a decline in world cricket, but it still can pin its hopes on warrior-queen Chamari Athapaththu. She has stock-listed her place in the hall of fame with the explosive and unforgettable 178 not out she scored against a stunned Australia in 2017. With 509 runs from 14 World Cup matches, she remains her country’s towering presence with the bat. She missed the 2022 edition, but her return to the middle for this edition is a rallying cry for Sri Lanka’s campaign.

Bowlers: The dream breakers

If batters are builders, bowlers are razers – destroying campaigns, breaking partnerships, silencing crowds, and turning the game on its head. It is a craft needing resilience, power, and the ability to mow down flat batting-friendly pitches. Let’s look at the arms departments where these battle soldiers have honed their craft to strike at the heart of opposition line-ups.

Deepti Sharma (India, ICC Bowler Rank No. 5)

India’s regular, Sharma, has long been indispensable for the team’s attack, be it with the bat or the ball. She has become folklore, being part of a record 320-run opening partnership with Punam Raut in a game against Ireland, where she scored 188 runs. Left arm with the bat and right arm with the ball, Sharma’s ambidexterity has made her the skipper’s dream, especially when it comes to her off-spin. Playing in her third World Cup, she will be using control and craft to make a bid for winning the first World Cup for her team.

Ashleigh Gardner (Australia, Rank No. 2)

When we think of Australia, we think of quick bowlers, but with 104 wickets in 80 ODIs, Gardner has transformed the perception by emerging as the team’s spin spearhead. Across her two World Cups, she has shown how she strikes when the team needs it the most. Always raring to go, she is someone who may emerge as a future skipper of this talent-heavy team.

Sophie Ecclestone (England, Rank No. 1)

For a spinner to be world number one explains why Ecclestone is the undisputed spin queen. Her jaw-dropping 6/36 against South Africa in the 2022 World Cup outshone her 21 wickets in nine matches. Her fitness levels were questioned during the 2025 Women’s Ashes tournament, which England lost but a lot has passed since then, and on Indian wickets, she can be a minefield.

Nahida Akter (Bangladesh, Rank No. 9)

She is just 24 and among the world’s top 10 with 69 wickets in 54 matches. A left-arm spinner by craft, Akter has had consummate guile to be among the wickets for Bangladesh often, with the 2022 campaign being her crowning glory. 

Nashra Sundhu (Pakistan, ICC Rank No. 13)

With Pakistan being on a mission to build its identity and impact in the World Cup arena, it is spinners like Sundhu who win the race of reliability. With 98 wickets in 72 ODIs, Sundhu has quietly been chipping away at the defenses of legendary batters. Across two World Cups, she has claimed 16 wickets in 13 matches, but it was her recent 6/26 against South Africa that cemented her place as Pakistan’s premier bowler. With 100 ODI wickets in her pocket, she enters this edition with momentum.

Marizanne Kapp (South Africa, ICC Rank No. 6)

Kapp, South Africa’s pace warhorse, boasts 169 wickets in 153 ODIs with a best of 5/45 against England in 2022. At 35, she is a veteran looking for the last glory, which, despite her 32 wickets in 22 matches, her team has missed out on across four previous World Cups. In her fifth and possibly last World Cup, this former netball player, track athlete, and holder of a degree in sports management, has enough push in her to become a party pooper for other teams.

The cricket story today has moved to multi-skilling. When batters falter and bowlers struggle, it’s often the all-rounders who carry their sides through. These gems, who bring balance, versatility, and an unmatched ability to turn games single-handedly, are the most sought-after currency in the game. Most of the above-mentioned names figure in this list. Here are the World Cup’s best all-rounders:

Ash Gardner, ranked ICC All-Rounder No 1
Marizanne Kapp ranked 2
Deepti Sharma ranked 4
Amelia Kerr of New Zealand ranked 5
Chamari Athapaththu ranked 7
Nat Sciver-Brunt ranked 8.

The top class names are ready for top class action. Find out when and where they play with our World Cup quick start guide: https://thenewwomenssportmagazine.com/when-and-where-to-watch-the-cricket-world-cup/